Spin noise spectroscopy in GaAs (110) quantum wells: Access to intrinsic spin lifetimes and equilibrium electron dynamics

In this letter, the first spin noise spectroscopy measurements in semiconductor systems of reduced effective dimensionality are reported. The non-demolition measurement technique gives access to the otherwise concealed intrinsic, low temperature electron spin relaxation time of n-doped GaAs (110) quantum wells and to the corresponding low temperature anisotropic spin relaxation. The Brownian motion of the electrons within the spin noise probe laser spot becomes manifest in a modification of the spin noise line width. Thereby, the spatially resolved observation of the stochastic spin polarization uniquely allows to study electron dynamics at equilibrium conditions with a vanishing total momentum of the electron system

DX5+NKT cells display phenotypical and functional differences between spleen and liver as well as NK1.1-Balb/c and NK1.1+ C57Bl/6 mice

These results show that DX5+NKT cells are a heterogeneous population, depending on the dedicated organ and mouse strain, that has diverse functional capacity

Conditions for the local manipulation of Gaussian states.

Published versio

Increased cytoplasmatic expression of cancer immune surveillance receptor CD1d in anaplastic thyroid carcinomas

Background Anaplastic thyroid carcinomas are associated with rapid tumor growth, short survival time and without any promising therapy to improve the poor prognosis. In this study, expression of immunoregulative receptor CD1d and lymphocyte infiltration in different thyroid tumors as well as in healthy tissue were analyzed in order to find new targets for an immunotherapeutic approach. Methods CD1d immunohistochemistry was performed in samples of 18 anaplastic, 17 follicular, 27 papillary, and 4 medullary thyroid carcinomas as well as in 19 specimens from normal thyroid tissue and additionally in 10 samples of sarcoma, seven malignant melanoma and three spindle-cell lung carcinoma. Furthermore, thyroid samples were stained with antibodies against CD3, CD20, CD56, CD68, and LCA in order to analyze lymphocyte infiltration. Results For the first time CD1d receptor expression on normal thyroid tissue could be demonstrated. Moreover, anaplastic thyroid carcinomas showed significantly higher expression levels compared to other thyroid samples. Most astonishingly, CD1d expression disappeared from the cellular surface and was detected rather in the cytoplasm of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma cells. In addition, histologically similar tumors to anaplastic carcinoma like sarcoma and malignant melanoma revealed distinct CD1d staining patterns. Furthermore, infiltration of T cells, B cells, and macrophages in anaplastic thyroid carcinomas was different when compared to normal thyroid tissue and all other thyroid carcinomas. Conclusions Anaplastic thyroid carcinomas show significantly higher expression of CD1d, a receptor for NKT cells, which are subject of several anticancer therapy studies. These results may offer a novel approach to explore immunotherapeutic treatment options

Oral antibiotic bowel decontamination in open and laparoscopic sigmoid resections for diverticular disease

PURPOSE There is an ongoing debate on whether or not to use oral antibiotic bowel decontamination in colorectal surgery, despite the numerous different regimens in terms of antibiotic substances and duration of application. As we routinely use oral antibiotic bowel decontamination (selective decontamination of the digestive tract (SDD) regimen and SDD regimen plus vancomycin since 2016) in surgery for diverticular disease, our aim was to retrospectively analyze the perioperative outcome in two independent centers. METHODS Data from two centers with a routine use of oral antibiotic bowel decontamination for up to 20 years of experience were analyzed for the perioperative outcome of 384 patients undergoing surgery for diverticular disease. RESULTS Overall morbidity was 12.8%, overall mortality was 0.3%, the overall rate of anastomotic leakage (AL) was 1.0%, and surgical site infections (SSIs) were 5.5% and 7.8% of all infectious complications including urinary tract infections and pneumonia. No serious adverse events were related to use of oral antibiotic bowel decontamination. Most of the patients (93.8%) completed the perioperative regimen. Additional use of vancomycin to the SDD regimen did not show a further reduction of infectious complications, including SSI and AL. CONCLUSION Oral antibiotic decontamination appears to be safe and effective with low rates of AL and infectious complications in surgery for diverticular disease

Endoscopic vacuum therapy for in- and outpatient treatment of colorectal defects

Background. Evidence for endoscopic vacuum therapy (EVT) for colorectal defects is still based on small patient series from various institutions, employing different treatment algorithms and methods. As EVT was invented at our institution 20 years ago, the aim was to report the efficacy and safety of EVT for colorectal defects as well as to analyze factors associated with efficacy, therapy duration, and outpatient treatment. Methods. Cohort study with analysis of prospectively collected data of patients receiving EVT for colorectal defects at a tertiary referral center in Germany (n=281). Results. The majority of patients had malignant disease (83%) and an American Society of Anesthesiologists classification of III/IV (81%). Most frequent indications for EVT were anastomotic leakage after sigmoid or rectal resection (67%) followed by rectal stump leakage (20%). EVT was successful in 256 out of 281 patients (91%). EVT following multi-visceral resection (P = 0.037) and recent surgical revision after primary surgery (P = 0.009) were risk factors for EVT failure. EVT-associated adverse events occurred in 27 patients (10%). Median treatment duration was 25 days. Previous chemo-radiation (P = 0.006) was associated with a significant longer duration of EVT. Outpatient treatment was conducted in 49% of patients with a median hospital stay reduction of 15 days and 98% treatment success. Younger patient age (P = 0.044) was associated with the possibility of outpatient treatment. Restoration of intestinal continuity was achieved in 60% of patients where technically possible with a 12-month rate of 52%. Conclusions. In patients with colorectal defects, EVT appears to be a safe and effective, minimally invasive option for in- and outpatient treatment

Modulation of human endogenous retrovirus (HERV) transcription during persistent and de novo HIV-1 infection

Background: The human genome contains multiple LTR elements including human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) that together account for approximately 8–9% of the genomic DNA. At least 40 different HERV groups have been assigned to three major HERV classes on the basis of their homologies to exogenous retroviruses. Although most HERVs are silenced by a variety of genetic and epigenetic mechanisms, they may be reactivated by environmental stimuli such as exogenous viruses and thus may contribute to pathogenic conditions. The objective of this study was to perform an in-depth analysis of the influence of HIV-1 infection on HERV activity in different cell types. Results: A retrovirus-specific microarray that covers major HERV groups from all three classes was used to analyze HERV transcription patterns in three persistently HIV-1 infected cell lines of different cellular origins and in their uninfected counterparts. All three persistently infected cell lines showed increased transcription of multiple class I and II HERV groups. Up-regulated transcription of five HERV taxa (HERV-E, HERV-T, HERV-K (HML-10) and two ERV9 subgroups) was confirmed by quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR analysis and could be reversed by knock-down of HIV-1 expression with HIV-1-specific siRNAs. Cells infected de novo by HIV-1 showed stronger transcriptional up-regulation of the HERV-K (HML-2) group than persistently infected cells of the same origin. Analysis of transcripts from individual members of this group revealed up-regulation of predominantly two proviral loci (ERVK-7 and ERVK-15) on chromosomes 1q22 and 7q34 in persistently infected KE37.1 cells, as well as in de novo HIV-1 infected LC5 cells, while only one single HML-2 locus (ERV-K6) on chromosome 7p22.1 was activated in persistently infected LC5 cells. Conclusions: Our results demonstrate that HIV-1 can alter HERV transcription patterns of infected cells and indicate a correlation between activation of HERV elements and the level of HIV-1 production. Moreover, our results suggest that the effects of HIV-1 on HERV activity may be far more extensive and complex than anticipated from initial studies with clinical material

Muscular myostatin gene expression and plasma concentrations are decreased in critically ill patients.

BACKGROUND The objective was to investigate the role of gene expression and plasma levels of the muscular protein myostatin in intensive care unit-acquired weakness (ICUAW). This was performed to evaluate a potential clinical and/or pathophysiological rationale of therapeutic myostatin inhibition. METHODS A retrospective analysis from pooled data of two prospective studies to assess the dynamics of myostatin plasma concentrations (day 4, 8 and 14) and myostatin gene (MSTN) expression levels in skeletal muscle (day 15) was performed. Associations of myostatin to clinical and electrophysiological outcomes, muscular metabolism and muscular atrophy pathways were investigated. RESULTS MSTN gene expression (median [IQR] fold change: 1.00 [0.68-1.54] vs. 0.26 [0.11-0.80]; p = 0.004) and myostatin plasma concentrations were significantly reduced in all critically ill patients when compared to healthy controls. In critically ill patients, myostatin plasma concentrations increased over time (median [IQR] fold change: day 4: 0.13 [0.08/0.21] vs. day 8: 0.23 [0.10/0.43] vs. day 14: 0.40 [0.26/0.61]; p < 0.001). Patients with ICUAW versus without ICUAW showed significantly lower MSTN gene expression levels (median [IQR] fold change: 0.17 [0.10/0.33] and 0.51 [0.20/0.86]; p = 0.047). Myostatin levels were directly correlated with muscle strength (correlation coefficient 0.339; p = 0.020) and insulin sensitivity index (correlation coefficient 0.357; p = 0.015). No association was observed between myostatin plasma concentrations as well as MSTN expression levels and levels of mobilization, electrophysiological variables, or markers of atrophy pathways. CONCLUSION Muscular gene expression and systemic protein levels of myostatin are downregulated during critical illness. The previously proposed therapeutic inhibition of myostatin does therefore not seem to have a pathophysiological rationale to improve muscle quality in critically ill patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION ISRCTN77569430 -13th of February 2008 and ISRCTN19392591 17th of February 2011